Trump Doubles Down, Insists ‘Canada Only Works As A State’

President Donald Trump doubled down on his desire to annex Canada for the U.S. on Thursday by insisting the the sovereign nation “only works as a state.”

During a meeting at the White House with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump told reporters that our neighbor to the north has “ripped off” the U.S. for years, and that “the United States can’t subsidize a country for $200 billion a year.”

He added that the U.S. doesn’t “need anything” that Canada provides, and said that the country would be better off being annexed. Canada, which exports things like natural gas, electricity and oil south, actually had closer to a $64 billion trade deficit with the U.S. last year.

Trump then cited reasons that he thought might convince 40 million Canadians to give up their sovereignty and become Americans.

“It would be one of the great states anywhere,” Trump said. “This would be the most incredible country visually. If you look at a map, they drew an artificial line right through it between Canada and the U.S. just a straight artificial line. Somebody did it a long time ago, many, many decades ago. And it makes no sense.”

Trump had kind words about the Canadian National Anthem, “O Canada,” and said it wouldn’t go away.

“Keeping, ‘Oh, Canada,’ the national anthem, I love it. I think it’s great. Keep it. But it’ll be for the state,” he said.

Some people have suggested that Trump’s desire to add Canada as a state is a joke, and part of his recession-risking tariff war the country.

However, former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last month over a hot mic that Trump is serious.

Although the NATO secretary general avoided commenting on the issue during his meeting went Trump, folks on social media weren’t as quiet.